Why are Jahova's Witnesses not allowed to serve in the Military, vote, or say the Plede of Allegience?

Question

I used to work with a Jahova's Witness and he informed me that he wasn't allowed to vote, because of religious reasons. He also said that he couldn't serve in the Military, nor say the Pledge of Allegience. Where I respect everyone's right to freedom of worship, I have a hard time understanding this certain religious practice. What happened during the draft in WWI, WWII, Korea, and Viet Nam? Did they get free reject slip simply because they were Jahova's Witnesses? Please help and I need serious answers, if you know the real reason. And please remember, I am not asking this because of any prejudicial reasons, I really want to know the truth as to why they aren't allowed by their strict religious beliefs to partake in any of these Very Patriotic Practices. Thanks.

Answer 1

thats what they believe but im a veteran and i definitely love the pledge....i dont bother voting though...

Answer 2

What scriptures has always had a bearing on the attitude of true christians toward involvement in political issues and activities? John 17:16: "they are no part of the world, just as I (Jesus) am no part of the world." You may also want to read John 6:15 and James 4:4. Now after reading James 4:4 can you not see why the matter is so serious . It is because at 1John 5:19 it says, "The whole world is lying in the power of the wicked one." At John 14:30, Jesus referred to Satan as "the ruler of the world." So, no matter what worldly faction a person might support, under whose control would he really come? Also regarding political involvement secular historians reported that early Christians would not hold political office and would not share in certain duties of Roman citizens. Also regarding the flag salute these scriptures have a bearing on the attitude of true Christians please read,1Corithians 10:14, 1John 5:21, and Luke 4:8. I hope this helps.

Answer 3

Jehovah’s Christian witnesses endeavor to follow God’s Word and the dictates of their Bible-trained conscience. Like Christians in the first century, they view themselves as ‘alien residents’ in the world of unbelieving mankind and give their loyalty to the kingdom of God by Christ. (1 Pet. 2:11)

It is for this reason that they refrain from all acts, including those of a nationalistic nature, that would imply disloyalty to God and his appointed King Jesus Christ.

It should be kept in mind that a national flag is more than a piece of cloth. It is officially viewed as a sacred symbol of a nation and is treated with reverence. When worn out, for example, the national practice often rules that the flag is not to be disposed of unceremoniously, but is to be ‘destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning.’

There are also regulations governing the hoisting, lowering, folding, flying and displaying of flags. Saluting or pledging allegiance to the flag is considered as a reverent act, an act of sacred devotion, and since the flag is an image of the State, such an act constitutes a form of idolatry.—Compare Exodus 20:4-6; 1 John 5:21.

While not discouraging others from saluting the flag of any nation, Jehovah’s Christian witnesses feel that they can give such worship only to Jehovah God. They have due respect for the flag of their respective countries, but for them to idolize the flag of any nation and engage in acts of worship to an image of the State would be an act of unfaithfulness toward God and disloyalty toward the kingdom of God’s Son.

Answer 4

The Christian Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses believes the bible to teach that followers of Christ would be neutral with regard to "the world" of politics and nationalism, and would 'love their enemies'.

(Luke 6:27-29) Continue to love your enemies, to do good to those hating you, to bless those cursing you, to pray for those who are insulting you. To him that strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also

(John 17:16) They [true Christians] are no part of the world, just as I am no part of the world


In the United States during World War II, a handful of Jehovah's Witnesses were given draft exemptions for "minister" status, while some others were allowed conscientious objection status. At least 2500 Jehovah's Witnesses were imprisoned in the 1940's for refusal to be inducted into the military. Thousands of other Witnesses in the United States were also imprisoned during conscription in the 1950s, '60s, and '70s.

In recent decades, nearly every Witness who has formally requested one has received a Presidential pardon for this "crime".

Technically, Jehovah's Witnesses can vote. Almost uniformly, however, they choose not to. They believe that God's Messianic Kingdom is a real government which will soon replace all human governments. Jehovah's Witnesses consider themselves to be ambassadors or envoys of God's government, and so believe that they must demonstrate political and nationalist neutrality.

(John 18:36) Jesus answered: “My kingdom is no part of this world

(Daniel 2:44) God of heaven will set up a kingdom... It will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, and it itself will stand to times indefinite


When Jehovah's Witnesses do choose to vote, they typically write in the name "Jehovah" or "Jesus". Sadly, most humans are unwilling to swear allegiance to either of those names (the only allegiance a Witness will swear); that saddens but does not surprise Jehovah's Witnesses.

(John 15:18-19) If the world hates you, you know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were part of the world, the world would be fond of what is its own. Now because you are no part of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, on this account the world hates you.

Learn more:
http://watchtower.org/e/20040401/
http://jw-media.org/edu_videos/vcfi_e.htm
http://jw-media.org/edu_videos/vcut_e.htm
http://jw-media.org/vnr/5263723221/22812301.htm

Answer 5

Jehovah's Witness' are taught to follow all God's Rules and to follow all man's rules. But you must keep yourself separate from the world. In other words you must live in this world so you will obey the speed laws and things like that. But you should not be part of the world of man bu voting, celebrating man's holidays, serving in man's army, etc.

I grew up a practicing Jehovah's Witness and as I got older I did not agree with the their ways and changed my religion. Please understand that what I knew what from many many years ago and some of the ideas may have changed since then. But this is what I was taught while I was part of the religion.

Answer 6

Jesus who is our King and Saviour is the greatest example we have to follow. Never would he or his apostles become involved in military battles or conflicts. Jesus would never vote for an imperfect human to rule over him and neither do we. We prefer the government that only Jehovah can provide for his faithful servants. We will pledge our allegiance to our God and to his Son only. To do otherwise is idolatry.
Jesus taught love and even said to love our enemies and to pray for them. Can you love them or pray for them and yet still kill them in battle? The answer is obvious. Our loyalty is not given to any country, flag or person. We will remain forever loyal to our God and adhere to his righteous laws.
Daniel 2:44

LOBT

Answer 7

Here are the scriptures we follow with respect to participateing in warfare:Matt. 26:52: Jesus instructed his followers to put away thier swords and not fight on his behalf. He then said "those who take the sword will perish by the sword.’” (Could there have been any higher cause for which to fight than to safeguard the Son of God? Yet, Jesus here indicated that those disciples were not to resort to weapons of physical warfare.)

Isaiah 2:2-4: “It must occur in the final part of the days that the mountain of the house of Jehovah will become firmly established above the top of the mountains . . . And he will certainly render judgment among the nations and set matters straight respecting many peoples. And they will have to beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning shears. Nation will not lift up sword against nation, neither will they learn war anymore.” (Individuals out of all nations must personally decide what course they will pursue. Those who have heeded Jehovah’s judgment give evidence that he is their God, he is the one "set matters straight". His people would be peaceful and not even learn the ways of war, which is part of military service even in times of peace)

2 Corinthians 10:3, 4: “Though we walk in the flesh, we do not wage warfare according to what we are in the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not fleshly, but powerful by God for overturning strongly entrenched things.” (Paul here states that he never resorted to fleshly weapons, such as trickery, high-sounding language, or carnal weapons, to protect the congregation against false teachings.)

Luke 6:27, 28: “I [Jesus Christ] say to you who are listening, Continue to love your enemies, to do good to those hating you, to bless those cursing you, to pray for those who are insulting you.”

Jehovah's Witnesses have been imprisoned during all the wars of this country where a draft was in place. Some were given a status of conscientious objector and some others were excused as ministers. The same is true of other countries. Some of our brothers are imprisoned at this very moment in Armenia and other countries due to this very issue.
As for the pledge of allegiance; Jehovah's Witnesses are loyal citizens, however we have already pledged our allegiance to Jehovah God and his kingdom. Giving worshipful allegiance to the flag of any country is idolatrous.(1John 5:21, Exodus 20:3-5)

Jesus said: “My kingdom is no part of this world.” (John 18:36) No matter what country they live in, Jesus’ true followers are subjects of his heavenly Kingdom and thus maintain strict neutrality in the world’s political affairs. They take no part in its conflicts. However, Jehovah’s worshipers do not interfere with what others choose to do about joining a political party, running for office, or voting. And while God’s true worshipers are neutral regarding politics, they are law-abiding. Why? Because God’s Word commands them to “be in subjection” to the governmental “superior authorities.” (Romans 13:1) Where there is a conflict between what God requires and what a political system requires, true worshipers follow the example of the apostles, who said: “We must obey God as ruler rather than men.”—Acts 5:29

Answer 8

Thou shalt not kill
Thou shalt have no other gods before my face nor bow down to them nor be induced to SERVE them.

Jehovah's Witnesses take God's word seriously when it tells them not to kill. And The first commandment and most important is to worship God..not a flag or a country or be induced to serve it.
Satan is the god of war. When your children join they are sacrificed on Satan's alter.
Then when your most precious son or daughter dies . Who do you blame? God !
God said don't kill.

As contentious objectors our sons are no less courageous than yours and yours do not show greater duty to the overall good than ours. Yet our sons obey God as ruler rather than man.
Jesus didn't enlist or encourage any of his followers to enlist in fact he rebuked Peter for drawing his sword in the garden of Gethsemane.

We only pledge allegiance to The Almighty God Jehovah.
Many of our sons went to jail during wars when there was a draft...But after the war they were released and they were alive.

We do not vote because we are no part of this world as Jesus was no part of the world ( of politics).

Answer 9

It's all based on how they misinterpret one scripture verse. It's like if you read just one line in the Bible, and based your entire religion on that one line.

Answer 10

Romans 13:1, 5-7: “Let every soul be in subjection to the superior authorities [governmental rulers], for there is no authority except by God . . . There is therefore compelling reason for you people to be in subjection, not only on account of that wrath but also on account of your conscience. . . . Render to all their dues, to him who calls for the tax, the tax; to him who calls for the tribute, the tribute; to him who calls for fear, such fear; to him who calls for honor, such honor.” (No government could exist without God’s permission. Regardless of the conduct of individual officials, true Christians have shown them respect because of the office they occupied. For example, regardless of the use that governments have made of tax money, worshipers of Jehovah have made honest payment of their taxes in return for those services from which everyone could benefit.)

Mark 12:17: “Jesus then said: ‘Pay back Caesar’s things to Caesar, but God’s things to God.’” (So Christians have always recognized that they must not only “pay back” money in the form of taxes to the secular government but also fulfill the superior obligations they have toward God.)

Acts 5:28, 29: "In answer Peter and the other apostles said: ‘We must obey God as ruler rather than men.’” (When there has been a direct conflict between the commands of human rulers and the requirements of God, true Christians have imitated the example of the apostles by putting obedience to God first.)
What scriptures have always had a bearing on the attitude of true Christians toward participation in carnal warfare?

Matthew 26:52: “Jesus said to him: ‘Return your sword to its place, for all those who take the sword will perish by the sword.’” (Could there have been any higher cause for which to fight than to safeguard the Son of God? Yet, Jesus here indicated that those disciples were not to resort to weapons of physical warfare.)

Isaiah 2:2-4: “It must occur in the final part of the days that the mountain of the house of Jehovah will become firmly established above the top of the mountains . . . And he will certainly render judgment among the nations and set matters straight respecting many peoples. And they will have to beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning shears. Nation will not lift up sword against nation, neither will they learn war anymore.”

2 Cor. 10:3, 4: “Though we walk in the flesh, we do not wage warfare according to what we are in the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not fleshly, but powerful by God for overturning strongly entrenched things.” (Paul here states that he never resorted to fleshly weapons, such as trickery, high-sounding language, or carnal weapons, to protect the congregation against false teachings.)

Luke 6:28: “I *Jesus Christ) say to you who are listening, Continue to love your enemies, to do good to those hating you, to bless those cursing you, to pray for those who are insulting you.” However, what is the motive of those nations when they go to war? Is it to carry out the will of the Creator of all the earth or is it to further some nationalistic interest? If true Christians in one nation were to go to war against another nation, they would be fighting against fellow believers, against people who prayed for help to the same God that they did. Appropriately, Jesus Christ directed his followers to lay down the sword. (Matthew 26:52) —2 Thessalonians 1:6-8; Rev. 19:11-21.

As to serving in the armed forces, what does secular history disclose about the attitude of early Christians?

“A careful review of all the information available goes to show that, until the time of Marcus Aurelius (Roman emperor from 161 to 180 C.E.), no Christian became a soldier; and no soldier, after becoming a Christian, remained in military service.”—"The Rise of Christianity" (London, 1947), E. W. Barnes, p. 333.
“We who were filled with war, and mutual slaughter, and every wickedness, have each through the whole earth changed our warlike weapons,—our swords into ploughshares, and our spears into implements of tillage,—and we cultivate piety, righteousness, philanthropy, faith, and hope, which we have from the Father Himself through Him who was crucified.”—Justin Martyr in “Dialogue With Trypho, a Jew” (2nd century C.E.), The Ante-Nicene Fathers (Grand Rapids, Mich.; reprint of 1885 Edinburgh edition), edited by A. Roberts and J. Donaldson, Vol. I, p. 254.

“They refused to take any active part in the civil administration or the military defence of the empire. . . . it was impossible that the Christians, without renouncing a more sacred duty, could assume the character of soldiers, of magistrates, or of princes.”—History of Christianity (New York, 1891), Edward Gibbon, pp. 162, 163.
What scriptures have always had a bearing on the attitude of true Christians toward involvement in political issues and activities?

John 6:15 - “Jesus, knowing they [the Jews] were about to come and seize him to make him king, withdrew again into the mountain all alone.” Later, he told the Roman governor: “My kingdom is no part of this world. If my kingdom were part of this world, my attendants would have fought that I should not be delivered up to the Jews. But, as it is, my kingdom is not from this source.”—John 18:36.

Because, as 1 John 5:19 says, “the whole world is lying in the power of the wicked one.”

Regarding political involvement, what do secular historians report as being the attitude of those known as early Christians?

“Early Christianity was little understood and was regarded with little favor by those who ruled the pagan world. . . . Christians refused to share certain duties of Roman citizens. . . . They would not hold political office.”—"On the Road to Civilization", A World History (Philadelphia, 1937), A. Heckel and J. Sigman, pp. 237, 238.

“The Christians stood aloof and distinct from the state, as a priestly and spiritual race, and Christianity seemed able to influence civil life only in that manner which, it must be confessed, is the purest, by practically endeavouring to instil more and more of holy feeling into the citizens of the state.”—"The History of the Christian Religion and Church", During the Three First Centuries (New York, 1848), Augustus Neander, translated from German by H. J. Rose, p. 168.
What scriptures have always had a bearing on the attitude of true Christians toward ceremonies involving flags and national anthems?

1 Cor. 10:14: “Flee from idolatry.” (Also Exodus 20:4, 5 -

1 John 5:21: “Little children, guard yourselves from idols.”

Luke 4:8: “In reply Jesus said to him: ‘It is written, “It is Jehovah your God you must worship, and it is to him alone you must render sacred service.”’” See also Daniel 3:1-28.

Do such patriotic symbols and ceremonies really have religious significance?

“Historian Carlton Hayes pointed out long ago that the ritual of flag-worship and oath-taking in an American school is a religious observance. . . . And that these daily rituals are religious has been at last affirmed by the Supreme Court in a series of cases.”—"The American Character" (New York, 1956), D. W. Brogan, pp. 163, 164.

“Early flags were almost purely of a religious character. . . . The national banner of England for centuries—the red cross of St. George—was a religious one; in fact the aid of religion seems ever to have been sought to give sanctity to national flags, and the origin of many can be traced to a sacred banner.”—'Encyclopædia Britannica' (1946), Vol. 9, p. 343.

“In a public ceremony presided over by the vice president of the (Military Supreme) Court, on the 19th of November, honors were shown to the Brazilian flag. . . . After the flag was hoisted, Minister General of the Army Tristao de Alencar Araripe expressed himself concerning the commemoration in this manner: ‘ . . . flags have become a divinity of patriotic religion which imposes worship . . . The flag is venerated and worshiped . . . The flag is worshiped, just as the Fatherland is worshiped.’”—"Diario da Justiça" (Federal Capital, Brazil), February 16, 1956, p. 1906.
With reference to patriotic ceremonies, what does secular history say about the attitude of those known as early Christians?

Has the neutrality of Christians meant that they are not interested in the welfare of their neighbors?

Certainly not. They know well and conscientiously endeavor to apply the command repeated by Jesus: “You must love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:39) Also the counsel recorded by the apostle Paul: “Let us work what is good toward all, but especially toward those related to us in the faith.” (Gal. 6:10.) They have been convinced that the greatest good that they can do for their neighbors is to share with them the good news of God’s Kingdom, which will forever solve the problems which people encounter and which will open up the hope of eternal life.

If you would like further information, please get in touch with Jehovah's Witnesses at the local Kingdom Hall. Or visit their official web site - http://www.watchtower.org